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Born in St Louis, twice-divorced Taylor studied business at Washington University before joining the navy after the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941.

Flying a Grumman F6F Hellcat fighter from the decks of the USS Essex and USS Enterprise he earned two Distinguished Flying Crosses and the Navy Air Medal.

After returning home he became a salesman for Lindberg Cadillac and it was here that he first realised the potential of the untapped car rental market.

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Last year, Enterprise Rent-A-Car was twice the size of each of its two main rivals

Known initially as Executive Leasing it was renamed Enterprise in 1969 in honour of the aircraft carrier Taylor served on. Although the business originally focused on local drivers, the big turnaround came in the 1970s when insurers decided to provide reasonably priced rental cars instead of cash to a driver making a claim.

The company later expanded into airports and abroad and in 2007 bought the Alamo and National brands. Despite its dominance in the rental market Taylor always maintained that customer service was his top priority.

“When I started Enterprise I just wanted the customer, when he walked out the door, to say ‘God, that’s a nice guy and a nice place to do business’.”

“I just wanted to be the best,” he said. Taylor is survived by son Andrew, now Enterprise chief executive, and daughter Jo Ann who oversees Enterprise Holdings Foundation.